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Sam Fender has handed over the complete sum of his £25k Mercury Prize cash to the Music Venues Trust, which operates to save the United Kingdom's small music venues.

Fender was awarded the award on October 16 as his latest record People Watching was declared the top album of the previous year.

The musician has chosen to donate the funds to the trust, in recognition of the crucial part local spots fulfilled in his initial steps.

"I couldn't be pursuing this success if it hadn't been for all the performances I played around the North East, and beyond, when I was starting out," remarked Sam Fender. "These venues are legendary, but they are in difficulty."

From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these locations have permanently closed – roughly one-sixth of the entire UK sector.

Over the past year, top acts like Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the MVT in its efforts to keep the scene afloat, by including a small levy to their admission fees, which benefits independent venues.

Sam Fender also joined in, collecting over £100k on his recent tour to assist thirty-eight small stages across England, Scotland, and Wales.

The donation helped spaces that were dealing with potential shutdown due to issues arising from floods, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as licensing issues, court cases and neighbor objections.

Some locations were granted financial assistance in modernizing amenities and sound and lighting systems that helped artists and concertgoers.

"The concept that funds from shows in major spaces supports the independent spots, where it kicks off for performers like me, is just sensible," Fender has said.

The musician is among several artists to contribute his Mercury Prize winnings to charitable organizations.

When Pulp received the prize in 1996 for their album their work, frontman Jarvis Cocker stated that the band would donate their prize money to the non-profit War Child.

That year, rapper and singer the artist divided her prize across multiple good causes, including the children's charity and a charity for Sickle Cell.

"Additionally, I gave a £1,000 to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was a child and they required better apparatus," she shared with outlets.

Two years ago, they gave their prize money to the community center that nurtured their band, in addition to other local music groups.

Also winners that year the group donated their award to a charity for MS after a acquaintance was found to have the illness.

"The victory was quite enough," stated artist the singer. "The cash was the bonus but we could do without the bonus, because we had the cake. So our success affected somebody else's life."

In the past week, the MVT shared it had saved several grassroots venues in that region, by placing them under community ownership.

The Joiners in Southampton and The Croft in Bristol were purchased under the public acquisition scheme, which is supported by Arts Council England and enthusiasts who acquire "shares" in the properties.